Demesnedenoir
Myth Weaver
I am pretty much unoffendable, heh heh.
Excited about? There isn’t one, to be blunt. But, I keep looking. The last time I started reading a fantasy book and said... ooh! Was when I stumbled on GRRM at a B&N back in ‘97 or thereabouts. Might’ve been ‘98, I think the hardcover of Clash of Kings might’ve just come out. Or might’ve bought GoT and had it sitting around unread until CoK came out, LOL. That’s probably why I really WANTED to love name of the Wind. I bought it in PB, then blamed my eyes for not reading it, and bought the digital, and kept trying to get into it. It didn’t work, sad to say.
Neil Gaiman can write, so he is my short list of writers to get around to reading.
I tend to write exactly what I want to read, and how I want it written... so these days I end of reading/editing my work rather than other people’s. I also keep checking out indie authors, see if I can find something. There is plenty of good out there, but nothing that excites me.
Excited about? There isn’t one, to be blunt. But, I keep looking. The last time I started reading a fantasy book and said... ooh! Was when I stumbled on GRRM at a B&N back in ‘97 or thereabouts. Might’ve been ‘98, I think the hardcover of Clash of Kings might’ve just come out. Or might’ve bought GoT and had it sitting around unread until CoK came out, LOL. That’s probably why I really WANTED to love name of the Wind. I bought it in PB, then blamed my eyes for not reading it, and bought the digital, and kept trying to get into it. It didn’t work, sad to say.
Neil Gaiman can write, so he is my short list of writers to get around to reading.
I tend to write exactly what I want to read, and how I want it written... so these days I end of reading/editing my work rather than other people’s. I also keep checking out indie authors, see if I can find something. There is plenty of good out there, but nothing that excites me.
All points clearly made and understood, Demesnedenoir – it surely is funny how people are different! Shame The Name of the Wind didn’t do it for you. But hey – that’s OK. It’s a big world. We can’t all be into the same stuff, can we? And please don’t think I mean any disrespect to Tolkien. The influence that gentleman has had on my life over the past forty years has been HUGE. The word ‘fan’ goes nowhere near expressing the esteem I have for him as a creator, writer and all-round top-class bloke.
I dunno … I seem to be out of step with pretty much everyone else on this thread. But still, as far as I see it, narrative voice of one kind or another is an inevitable consequence of the writing process – everyone who writes develops one by default. It’s not something we’re all obliged to make a song and dance about. I don’t see anything wrong in working toward a neutral, or generic, storyteller’s tone and just writing a good tale for its own sake without worrying about how individual or revelatory of the author’s character the style may be.
What’s more important to our readers? The story, or insights into the personality of the writer? For me, in sci-fi and fantasy at least, the story comes first (most of the time).
Incidentally, if Rothfuss sends you to sleep, who are the contemporary fantasy writers you think are worth getting excited about?